Events & Programme Manager

Reports to: Head of Awards & Festival

Location: Hybrid, remote working + 2 days in the London office (E2)

Job Type: Full-time, permanent

Salary: £34,000-£44,000 per annum - depending on experience

Hours: 09:30-17:30 (Standard office hours). This events role requires flexibility in working hours and location in line with event delivery, deadlines and team hours. This year, you must be free to work over D&AD Awards Judging & Festival which is from Saturday 16 to Wednesday 20 May 2026, the New Blood Festival which is Sunday 28 June to Wednesday 1 July 2026, and the D&AD Awards Ceremony on Thursday 24 September 2026. (Please note dates of key events vary each year) Your hours may be rearranged or you will get time back in lieu for weekend work and overtime accrued.

The Events & Programme Manager is responsible for the planning, delivery and development of D&AD’s year-round programme of in-person and online events. This includes, but is not limited to, Awards judging and ceremonies, the D&AD Festival, New Blood Festival, Impact Programme events, talks, roundtables and in-house programming. Reporting to the Head of Awards & Festival, this role sits at the heart of D&AD’s programme delivery. It combines hands-on event management with programme development, speaker curation and stakeholder coordination. The role is delivery-led, with a strong focus on quality, experience and operational excellence, rather than commercial growth or revenue generation. The Events & Programme Manager will act as a key point of contact for speakers, partners, councils and internal teams, ensuring programmes are delivered to a consistently high standard and continue to evolve in line with D&AD’s purpose and values.

Overview:

• You will be required to work from the London office (E2) a minimum of three days a week, typically Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays, with flexibility to work from home or the office on the remaining two days.
• As this is an events role, there will be periods of increased office attendance during peak delivery moments.
• Working evenings will be required to support events, alongside one weekend per year during Awards judging.
• Your weekly hours can be re-arranged to ensure you are not working excessive hours and where required and agreed with your line manager, time off in lieu will be provided.

Dimension of Role:

• Responsible for the end-to-end delivery of multiple D&AD programmes, with a particular focus on in-house and Awards-related events, the D&AD Festival, New Blood Festival and Impact Programme.
• Manages event timelines, logistics and delivery plans across the year, working across multiple programmes in parallel.
• Acts as a primary point of contact for speakers, contributors, councils and attendees across assigned programmes.
• Plays an active role in programme development, including speaker research, content shaping and event formats.
• Supports and line-manages temporary staff, freelancers or junior team members during peak periods.
• Works closely with Awards, Marketing, Partnerships, Operations and Finance teams to ensure joined-up delivery.
• Requires regular external industry communication, increasing significantly from September through June.
• Responsible for all events H&S requirements, documentation and risk assessment.

The role requires external outreach to the industry with regards speaker recommendations, invitations and category development. This can take the form of email, phone calls including zoom or similar platforms, face to face meeting, or assisting at round tables or focus group style events. Frequency will be dependent on time of year with almost daily communications coordinated from September through June. Internal communications with the Awards team on a weekly basis will be required. This includes meeting with the wider Awards team and meeting with direct reports for 1:1s. You will also need to attend a monthly All Staffer with the wider business. Internal communications take place over email, Zoom, G-Chat or telephone, and/or in person when required.

Responsibilities & Duties:

Main accountabilities/responsibilities of the role include, but are not limited to:

• Event Delivery & Operations:

• Own the planning and delivery of assigned events from briefing through to live delivery and post-event follow-up.
• Create and maintain event schedules, project plans and documentation across Google Workspace and monday.com.
• Manage event booking systems ensuring all listings, ticketing and event information are accurate and up to date.
• Own and maintain the global events calendar, coordinating activity across regions and working closely with regional leads to support the planning and delivery of D&AD events worldwide while ensuring consistency of experience, timelines and standards.
• Coordinate venue logistics, space planning, technical requirements and supplier liaison.
• Act as an on-site lead or senior support at events, managing speakers, suppliers, staff and guest experience.
• Support Awards judging operations, including documentation, scheduling, results management and on-site delivery.
• Deliver any event on time and within budget.
• Coordinate travel, accommodation and speaker fee payments where required.
• Ensure speaker profiles, session information and event content are accurate and approved.
• Work closely with technical and production teams to resolve issues efficiently during live delivery.

• Support the development and evolution of D&AD’s event and festival programmes, ensuring content remains relevant, progressive and aligned with organisational priorities.
• Research speakers, contributors and industry voices for events, festivals and roundtables.
• Coordinate the annual review of designated Awards and Festival programmes and formats.
• Support diversity and representation goals through speaker and contributor selection.
• Identify opportunities to improve programme formats, audience experience and operational processes.
• Conduct competitor and sector research to inform future programme development.

• Act as a key delivery lead for Impact Programme events and activity.
• Maintain regular communications with the Impact Council and Future Impact projects.
• Support the planning, delivery and reporting of Impact-related events and moments.
• Ensure Impact programming aligns with wider D&AD objectives and delivery standards.

• Track and analyse event queries, attendance and feedback to inform improvements.
• Coordinate post-event feedback collection and reporting.
• Support diversity monitoring and reporting across programmes as required.
• Prepare reports, summaries and presentations for internal stakeholders.

• Promote the use of social media amongst our speakers and associated agencies.
• Identify and recommend promotional partners for events.
• Facilitate cross-promotional agreements (eg, swag, contra deals) working with the Partnerships team to ensure agreements are met.

You will need to support the Awards team with ad hoc tasks when required. This job description is not exhaustive and the postholder may be required to undertake other duties appropriate to the role and the needs of the business.

Skills & Qualities:

Knowledge, skills and attributes required for the post:

• Proven experience delivering in-person and/or online events end-to-end.
• Strong project and programme management skills.
• Excellent organisational skills with the ability to manage multiple timelines.
• Confident communicator, able to work with senior industry figures and partners.
• Experience coordinating speakers, suppliers and external stakeholders.
• Strong administrative and systems skills, (preferably Hubspot, Google Suite, Adobe, event management platforms, eg Ticket Tailor or Eventbrite, and project management software, eg monday.com).
• Budget management experience.
• Ability to remain calm, solutions-focused and detail-driven under pressure.

Personal Qualities:

• Proactive and self-motivated with a strong sense of ownership.
• Flexible and adaptable, particularly during busy delivery periods.
• Meticulous attention to detail alongside big-picture thinking.
• Collaborative and supportive team player.
• Approachable, professional and confident in fast-paced environments.
• Interest in, and understanding of, the creative, advertising and design industries.

D&AD is committed to diversity, equality, equity, inclusion and respect for all. Providing a work environment in which all employees are treated with fairness, respect and dignity and which is free of discrimination, victimisation, bullying and harassment. At D&AD we are interested in every individual bringing their ‘Whole Self’ to work and this includes you!

Please email vanessa.knight@btinternet.com to let us know if you need any reasonable adjustments to be made for any part of the recruitment process. In order to comply with the Prevention of Illegal Working, Immigration, Asylum and Nationality Act, you will need to provide appropriate documentation that proves that you are eligible to work in the UK. Due to the number of applications we receive, we regret that you will not be contacted unless you are shortlisted for an interview. If you have not heard from us within three weeks of the closing date of your application you should assume that you have not been successful on this occasion. Our privacy statement can be viewed on the D&AD careers page.